• Aftershock: Entry One

    The Apocalypse was a series of events that brought about the near destruction of the Earth in the years following two thousand and eighty three A.D. America once the most powerful in world fell under the united forces of Italy, England and Japan. The new alliance formed to clear out the now tyrannical country and did so without the assistance of the other nations who were fighting amongst themselves over weapons stockpiles appearing all over the world and the swiftly dwindling supply of fossil fuels. The three countries formed an even stronger alliance in attempt to bring the world back into order. But it ultimately failed and fell into ruin when Ireland drove the English from their islands and proceeded to assassinate the King. The Irish then fell back to their land and left the world to tear itself apart. Without the diplomatic hands of the English keeping the Middle East in line the deserts of Iraq, Iran, Egypt and Jordan were reduced to naught but blackened and broken glass.

    These were dire times indeed and from the hopelessness and despair arose a new plague to modern man, the Nosferatu. A race of beings created through a mysterious and highly infectious disease that spread like wildfire through the infected persons bodily fluids. These people were much faster than humans, stronger and were possessed of much keener senses. But the most dangerous factor of these creatures was their unique hunger, a hunger for the vital blood of living creatures. Earning them their many names from old world myths, from Stoker's name for the blood-drinking beasts in Nosferatu, to the simplified term of Vampire.

    In desperation the remaining leaders of the world drug their peoples together to fight against the powerful and well organized threat seeking to enslave them all without prejudice to nationality or allegiance. And through the next ten years of war and conflict the beleaguered lands and cities of the human world were reduced to nothing but rubble and abandoned towns and villages considered to small to waste the effort of destroying. Then came the nuclear strikes, humans attempted to purge the vampires by setting off a miniature nuclear apocalypse that nearly killed off everyone of both races and left the world charred and many once fertile places barren. It took the world many more years to recover, and its people even more. The remaining humans and Vampires rushed to claim territories as their own to begin life anew, old towns still standing, shelters left intact, and old underground facilities became battle grounds or outposts for either side. In the end the humans were still alive, and the vampires still sought their blood. Which brought about the formation of the Borderguards, an elite force of human enforcers charged with escorting supply, or colonization caravans throughout the lands and keep them safe from vampiric raiders or human brigands. These Borderguards became the thing of legends to human and vampire alike, their skill and will tested again and again and yet they still stood strong. Our tale is of two such Borderguards in the southern reaches of Ireland, one named Artemis Cope, and the other Alexander Elry.

    Entry Two:

    His prey fumbled through the darkness of the abandoned office building, slamming into furniture and falling over upturned chairs. Yet the pitiful terran still managed to maintain a fair speed in his flight from his hunter. Yuri was a Vampire and possessed of sharper instincts and keener night vision. He made a steady unconcerned pace as he followed his food through the small office park. Chasing him from one building to the next forcing the poor man into a state of panic that made him even more delectable. Humans when scared and full of fresh adrenaline made for a much better meal than one who never saw his fate coming. And by the rapid beat of the terran's pulse, which he could feel even as far away as he was, he knew that this meal would be exquisite. So he chased on till they reached the last couple of rooms in the office building and the terran gave up flight and sought to hide. He humored his prey for a moment and wandered around acting as though in search of the poor sap, but quickly grew bored of his ruse. He felt the man hiding behind the tall oak desk, his pulse racing faster and faster, the sickly sweet scent of his sweat filling the room. It was time he thought as he smiled wickedly, time to feast indeed.

    …

    The door exploded into splinters as the vampire pushed his way through it, he had caught the creature off guard and had managed to stab it in the leg with an old letter opener gaining him an escape route past the creature and out of the nearest exit. He had bolted the heavy wooden door in hopes that the vampire would think him still in the building. But his ploy ultimately failed him, he desperately looked for a place to run to or to hide in but found nothing in the barren town that could immediately help him. In front of the office park were a lot of nearly destroyed buildings that would provide no shelter and behind him was the golden grassy horizon that was broken only by small dots of red leaved trees. Eric fell to the ground in despair, he had survived the attack on his caravan alone and he had thought he had escaped free of any tails. But he hadn't and now he was going to die alone in some forgotten town killed by a sadistic creature that would feast upon his blood like some kind of animal. Making him stay alive to feel every bit of the torture he knew the vampire would employ.

    …

    His prey fell to the ground dejectedly, defeated as he was by the sheer reality of his fate. The man was going to die, simple as that. This terran would suffer greatly for even daring to harm his better. So he approached slowly his wicked grin from before twisting in to something even more disgusting and twisted. This would be an interesting night he thought. He focused entirely on the piteous man cowering before him and prepared to snap his legs to keep him still when his focus was shattered by the sharp loud crack of high powered weapons fire from nearby. Sensing that he was the target he dodge swiftly to his right, faster than many humans could even register he moved out of the trajectory of the incoming round. His smile widened when he imagined having two pets to toy with. But his hopes where dashed when his arm was torn off from the shoulder by the heavy blast of the .50 caliber rifle round. "What?!" He screamed as blood began to turn towards the source of the shot but was turned back around by the rip of the next round tearing through his heart. He held his position, still standing with his blood pouring out onto the ground and started to turn again. His pupils fully dilated in pain that ignited the nerves in his body like wild fire. And he caught the glimpse of a grim faced man with silverfish blue eyes as the last round ended his life and causing his head to explode and paint the walls of the nearest buildings with blackish red spray.